This tutorial will show you how to easily transfer an entire directory tree without having to do each file independently. This is easily done if you have a fancy FTP client application. However, if you are transferring from server to server (for example if you change web hosts) you may need to perform a FTP transfer via command line tools. This may be especially important if you use web site scripts which require specific permissions.
 

The File Transfer Protocol (FTP) is a common tool used to copy files between computers on the Internet. Note that it copies files rather than moving files (it will not alter the original file). If you plan on using FTP to transfer files from one server to another (old host to your new host), then you must be able to log into both servers.

Your old server is where you will do your prep work and is where you will issue the FTP command - this server is called the "local host". Your new server is called the "remote host".

The purpose behind creating this tutorial is because some sites has many scripts and directories that require specific permissions to function correctly. It would take a long time to reconfigure the scripts on a new server. But this method saves hours of work. All you do is zip the directory, ftp the zip file to the new site and unzip the file - your done. All the permissions remain intact. You may need to change some path pointers in your scripts but that is minor compared to checking the permissions of each file.

• First, you must telnet or SSH into your old host server containing your web site (contact your host if you don't have access).
• Once you log in, use the change directory command "cd" to navigate to the directory just outside of your public html directory (or whatever directory you want to transfer). For example, if you store your web site in /home/user/public_html then you would change directory to the /home/user directory. To view which directory you currently reside in, use the "pwd" command. To view the contents of your directory, use the "ls" or "ls -lsa" command.

• The "tar" command stands for "tape archive". What it can do is archive an entire directory into a single file. This is great for backup and transfer purposes.
• Illustrated below is an example using the "pwd" command to determine the working directory (yours will be different) and the "ls" command to list the contents of the directory.
  
• In this example, the directory "public_html" contains my web site and cgi-bin directory where all my scripts are located. Therefore, I want to create a tape archive of the entire public_html directory.
• Type "tar -cvf anyname.tar dirname" to create an archive of your directory. In our example, I would type "tar -cvf webarchive.tar public_html". The dirname has to be the name of the directory you want to tar but the resulting tar file (anyname.tar) can be any name.
• Illustrated below is an example using the tar command. You will notice that it listed all the files and directories that it archived. Running a "ls" command shows that a new "webarchive.tar" file has been created while the original public_html directory remains. <NOTE: the tar command creates a copy of the original directory - it does not move or delete the directory or files contained therein.>
  

• The "gzip" command is the UNIX flavor of WinZIP. It is used to compress large files into a more manageable size. A smaller file size will result in a quicker FTP transfer.
• Type "gzip anyname.tar" to compress your archive. In our example, I would type "gzip webarchive.tar". Illustrated below is an example of the gzip command followed by a listing of the directory. You will note the that gzip command appends a ".gz" suffix to the end of the file.
  

• There are many tutorials available on the web for using command line FTP (just do a search for "command line FTP" on Google). Here I will present just the basics.
• Assuming that you are still logged into your old server (localhost), type "ftp www.yournewserver.com". The remotehost should be prompt your for your username and password similar to the screenshot below.
  
• Once you have successfully logged in, then type "put anyname.tar.gz". In our example, I would type "put webarchive.tar.gz". The screen shot below illustrates a successful transfer.
  
• Type "quit" when the transfer is complete. You should end up back at your shell command prompt prior to initiating the ftp session (illustrated below).
  

• Log into your new server using telnet or SSH (contact your host if you don't have access).
• Once you log in, use the change directory command "cd" to navigate to the directory containing your uploaded archive. It will probably be located in your home directory. Remember the "pwd" command will show you where you are currently located in the directory tree.
• Using the move command "mv" move the file to the directory where you wish to expand the archive (this should be the root directory of your web site - if your web site is published in the "/home/user/www" directory, you should be in "/home/user/".)
• Then use the "cd" command to change your directory to the location where you just moved the archive. Illustrated below is an example on my server (inside the "test" directory contains my "www" directory where my site is published).
  

• Use the "gunzip" command to unzip your archive (i.e., "gunzip anyname.tar.gz"). In our example I would type "gunzip webarchive.tar.gz".
• Next, use the "tar" command to unextract your archive (i.e., "tar -xvf anyname.tar). In our example I would type "tar -xvf webarchive.tar". Illustrated below is an example of these commands followed by a list directory command, "ls".
  

• In our example the root web publishing directory is different between our new and old server. On our old server the directory was "public_html" and on the new server it is "www". Therefore, we need to copy data from "public_html" to "www". If your root web publishing directories are the same between the two servers, then you may skip this step.
• Use the copy command "cp -rv public_html/* www" to copy data from your archive into your root web folder. Illustrated below is an example of the command being issued where "public_html" is the old directory and "www" is the new.
  
• If you have similar files in the new directory, you may be prompted to overwrite them. If you are unsure whether or not it is safe to overwrite certain files, I would suggest that you do not overwrite the files and contact your web host provider. Ask them exactly which files are required in the root web publishing directory and which are safe to overwrite.

• That should complete the transfer. Test your new site by using your IP address or appropriate means as defined by your new hosting provider. If your home page doesn't show up, be certain that you transferred the files to the appropriate directory. Remember the "pwd" command will show you which directory you are currently in.
• Once you have successfully tested your transfer, you may delete your *.tar file to save space. Use the "rm *.tar" command to delete the file while logged in via telnet or SSH.

• UNIX/LINUX COMMANDS
• COMMAND LINE FTP TUTORIAL
• A FREE SSH CLIENT (PUTTY)